The document discusses cultural differences and adjusting to a new culture. It outlines the influences of expectations and personality traits on cultural adaptation. It also describes the stages of culture shock and provides strategies like describing objectively, interpreting, and evaluating to help cope with unfamiliar cultural situations.

1. Dealing with Cultural Differences
Russell Frank, ESL
College 1

2. QUESTION
What is one unexpected cultural situation
you have experienced since you came
here? How did you respond?
When you encounter a cultural situation
that is very new or different for you, how
does that make you feel?

3. Influence #1: Expectations
• The ideas, attitudes, and knowledge you
have about a new culture greatly affects
the experience you will have.
• The expectations we have come from a
variety of sources—media, friends, and
family, etc.
• Unrealistic expectations can lead to
unhappiness for newcomers in the U.S.

4. Influence #2: Personality
Characteristics
Characteristics that can help you adapt:
• Patience
• Sense of humor
• Tolerance for ambiguity
– ―Well, I don’t know what’s going on here. I’ll
just have to wait and see, or try to figure out.‖

5. Traits & Situations
• People’s behavior results from some
combination of their personality traits and
situations in which they find themselves.
• Unfamiliar cultural situations 
misunderstanding of people’s responses

6. Culture Shock
• The process of adjusting to a new culture begins from
the time we decide to go abroad
• Stage 1: excitement, curiosity, stimulation
• Stage 2: Culture shock: feeling of confusion &
disorientation
– Smells, flavors, feeling of the air, language, behavior…
– Everyone experiences it
– Passes with time
• Stage 3: Negative feelings:
disappointment, frustration, depression, anger, hostility
• Stage 4: Learning & understanding  more
competent and comfort

7. D-I-E to Adapt
• D = Describe
– What you see, objective facts
• I = Interpret
– What you think about what you see
• E = Evaluate
– What you feel about what you see
– Being judgmental usually isn’t helpful

8. Activities for Learning about
American Culture
• Ask questions
• Learn and practice local English
• Take field trips – observe people, places & things
– E.g., a busy intersection, parent-child interactions, male-female
interactions, a public commercial building, a restaurant, the reception
area of an office, an American business meeting, a public bus, a local
neighborhood, a local school, a drugstore/grocery store/department
store, a church service, the local police station, a meeting of the city
council, an American home, a sporting event, garage sales, an ―open
house‖
• Talk with experienced foreigners
• Keep a journal
• Learn the names of local and institutional VIPs,
• Read, reflect

9. Resource (on Canvas)
• Althen, Gary. ―Part 3: Coping with Cultural
Differences.‖ American Ways, 2nd Ed.
Boston: Intercultural Press, 2003: 259-
284.